Thoughts on OR. The good.

August 16, 2010

I didn’t intend on separating bad from good, but that’s the nature of the creative process, isn’t it? I did see a lot of great stuff at OR. That one bad experience (click here) just needed to be dealt with separately.

Mostly I was very happy with how much women’s gear has improved in the few years I’ve been involved in the industry. Everywhere I looked I saw great women’s specific product, particularly from the established companies and manufacturers. New companies that weren’t making ONLY women’s product tended to be a bit behind the curve, still, but they’re working on that Euro method of dumping the men’s product out, seeing if it does OK, THEN making a women’s version. I personally think they could be missing out on some serious money making by not putting out good women’s versions from the get-go, but it’s their bottom line so let them do it their way.

Women’s packs have taken big strides, with Gregory and Mammut‘s offerings taking top honors from me. I’m keen to give those packs a try so look for them in the lineup soon. I was happy to see that the too-big Petzl ELIA sample helmet I had been testing was just a goofed-up prototype and the real ELIA fits just fine. SCARPA gets a big thumbs-up for jettisoning the hackneyed Diva name from their ski boot line and coming up with the Shaka and Gea as well. I’ve never been disappointed with a pair of SCARPA ski boots so I’m excited to see what the new versions have to offer. Ortovox was a lot of fun to meet with and seem to be very keen on improving the women’s line, though their current women’s packs are already in the front of the line in my gear room. All of my wheel-squeaking paid off with RAB, which has finally released the women’s version of the Alpine Trek Pants. I was so excited about the pants that I absconded with them to the changing room to try them on, and they fit and look great so I’m stoked to get my hands on a pair to try in the real world. Because no, the RAB fitting room at OR is not the real world.

Footwear companies seem to be catching on to the fact that women have feet, too, with Tecnica and La Sportiva presenting an impressive array of women’s specific footwear. As you all know I am convinced that La Sportiva can do no wrong, but I’ve never tried Tecnica and I have to love their blatant casting aside of the minimalist trend as they bring forward some maximalist running shoes. Again, real world experience is needed so just stay tuned.

Skirt Sports and Isis were outstanding with their women’s apparel as usual, and I was impressed by my first meeting ever with Carve Designs, a company making surf and swimwear as well as beach lifestyle apparel exclusively for women. I love the photography in their catalog and on their web site, which portrays women as surfers and athletes, not just “models”.

Buff stole my idea for cutting Buffs in half to make them fit better under a helmet, but then they gave me two more Buffs so I forgive them. They also plan to make more of their Buffs with insect shield, which really really works. That too was my idea but if they give me another insect shield Buff I will forgive them for that too. Buff can really get away with a lot because I love Buffs. I can be bought with Buffs, yes – but only by Buff itself. The rest of you have to come up with something else.

At this point I was tired but the new watermelon flavored Chomps from Gu gave me a little pick-me-up. That was pretty much the sum total of my lunch that day so the fact that I’m not lying on the show floor dead of hunger is probably a good endorsement for Gu.

Lafuma and Millet were brand new to me but I was really impressed by their stuff. I currently have a Millet pack to test but I liked the clothing as well so hopefully I’ll have some details for you on their stuff later. Mountain Hardwear, a perennial favorite, was fantastic as usual and it was great to see the familiar faces again after spending a few days with them testing packs last year. I made fantastic new friends at the Columbia booth and was happy to see that my feedback on the Ravenous running shoe had been heard loud and clear and that another, stiffer version of the Ravenous is coming to the market.

I got some SUPER EXCITING news for women from Patagonia, but I can’t tell you what it is because they specifically asked me not to tell. If you are familiar with the Patagonia line and you can think of a great product that is currently not available in a women’s version, you will be very, very happy when this news becomes public.

My visit to the Icebreaker booth was just a drop by but the very personable and entertaining Nick won me over by filling my swag bag with socks and a dress. A dress! I love dresses ergo I love Icebreaker. I have used the socks already and can tell you now that Icebreaker makes great socks. I was really digging on their line of cycling apparel and their general vibe and great product. I had a fun time at the Polarmax booth with Don Watkins checking out the base layers and the new undies with “Scent Prevent”. I warned Don ahead of time that I was going to have some fun with that one and I think he may have blushed a bit.

Mountain Khakis has some great new stuff and were good fun to visit as always. I hope all you media types took advantage of their great pre-order offer which benefited the Conservation Alliance as well as whoever bought Mountain Khaki pants for that cheap. Even if you didn’t, MK is fantastic and even the full price pants are a good buy.

Dog gear was out on full force as well. Every year it just gets better and better. I guess I have to disclose that my dog is a sponsored D-Fa athlete so we get to try all of their great stuff. D for dogs, said with a New Zealand accent, D-Fa, get it? This year we got a new D-Fa DFD dog PFD to keep the furry little guy safe in the water, and a danger orange reflective Moon Walker raincoat to keep him safe on the dark, rainy streets of Vancouver. He’s really looking forward to using his Puff Doggy coat this winter in the cold weather, and he just generally likes going to D-Fa because the folks there are so great to hang out with. He always gets a full session of belly rubs and head scratches, and probably more ego-boosting comments about how gorgeous he is than he really should get. Don’t want him to get a big head or anything.

Geardog kept his strength up with new treats from Zukes and PeakWaggers. I usually don’t give him any treats because he is highly allergic to many dog foods and treats. However, I felt bad for him having to hike the show floor so much, so I let him have tons of treats and he didn’t have a reaction to any of them. He was INSANE for the Zuke’s treats at the Verde PR media event, and was always happy to go to the Bark Park where a basket of Peak Waggers waited to give his blood sugar a boost.

He and I were also highly impressed by Ruff Wear which has a GREAT new product on the market; winter booties for dogs that have built-in gaiters as well as protection from cuts from ski edges. Geardog even got a new Lunker toy which he was VERY happy with, and got to rest for a while on the new Highlands bed which he liked very much. Usually we go for the winter stuff to keep him warm during his avalanche duties, but in Salt Lake City we would have been happy to try the Swamp Cooler cooling jacket too.

Whew! What a wrap up! That’s really only about half of what we saw. Tons of good stuff this year, a great vibe, and all around a great show. Look for details on the new products in the reviews section over the next few months, and let me know if there is anything I missed, because the show is just so big that I’m sure I missed a lot.

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